Jayhawks Conclude Knights and Pirates Invitational
April 10, 2012
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MELBOURNE, Fla. – Katy Nugent shaved nine strokes off her final round but it wasn’t enough as the Jayhawks finished in 15th place at the Knights and Pirates Invitational in Melbourne, Fla., Tuesday. Kansas struggled in the final round, finishing the day with a 323 and a 54-hole total of 956. Head coach Erin O’Neil saw improvements in some areas but inconsistencies in others.
“During the 10 days leading up to this event we spent a lot of time working on our short games and mental games and we definitely saw improvements in those areas during the tournament,” Coach O’Neil said. “However, we didn’t consistently hit the ball as well as we are capable of doing and that is where we gave up a lot of strokes along with 3-putts.”
Sophomore Thanuttra Boonraksasat led all Jayhawks with a 54-hole total of 238. After carding a 77 and 79 in her first two rounds, Boonraksasat fell three strokes to finish the invitational with an 82, placing 67th. Nugent collected a 77 and 86 in her first two rounds on Monday but came back with a 77 in her final 18 as she jumped from 73rd to a tie for 69th place. Her 240 tied for second for the Jayhawks during the tournament.
Junior Audrey Yowell, who had two consistent rounds of 79, also fell three strokes in the final round to finish with a 240, putting her in a tie for 69th while freshman Michelle Woods concluded the tournament with a two-day total of 247 (84-77-86) and placing 83rd. Sophomore Meghan Potee rounded out the Jayhawk lineup with a 249 (86-81-82), finishing 84th Tuesday. Competing as an individual, Gabby DiMarco carded a total of 242 (76-86-80) to finish in a tie for 74th.
Kansas will get a couple weeks of practice in before hosting the Big 12 Championships at Lawrence Country Club April 27-29. Coach O’Neil knows there are aspects of the game the team needs to work on in order to be competitive in the postseason.
“We will continue to focus on our mental and short games as well as work on getting our long games back on track in preparation for Conference,” Coach O’Neil said. “Our goal is to be as comfortable as possible at LCC so that we can play relaxed and enjoy hosting the championship.”
